The Hot Springs star. (Hot Spings [Hot Springs], Dakota [Dakota Territory, i.e. S.D.]) 1886-189?, 1887-12-30

Joe there on TINS 0fCefn00n ana
looked out into the dreary prospect,
thinking, thinking, thinking. The sky
was full Of grayness that the smoke did
not make. 1t had q sorrowful look In It.
He wondered If it wanted to cry. He
wondered if it had had a flower and lost
it. He wondered Il 1t had ever seen the
green fields. And he wonderedif it was
hungry, Joe vas very, very hungry.
breakfast, andnothing since. "If 1can't
find work we'll have to starve," his
grandfather had said, with such q dis
Outraged look that Joe had cried out:
80, never mind, grandfather. TIM not
very hungry now" Then the old man
had gone away and left the lad alone.
As he sat there he heard sound that
he had never heard before. 1t was like
pleasant thunder, low and deep, but
sweet. It sounded far off, and then
seemed to grow louder and come nearer.
Joe, who could only look at what wa
directly before the attic window, did not
know that close to the side Of the old
tenement-house a great church had been
built. The thunder that he listened to
with such delight was the voice Of the
organ, heard for the first time. They
were trying it at their rehearsalof Christ.
mas music. For the morrow would be
Christmas-Day, and the children were to
sing carols; and as he listened to the glad
voices of the children SO neal by, but
who had never heard of poor little Joe,
and never would, perhaps, and whose
lives were rs happy as his was miserable,
he was certain that he heard angels.
His eyes glowed. His breath came and
went in .vr;tesl little rr.>s. Fis face
was full Of eager joy. $50 sweet, sc
beautiful" he kept saying to himself as
| the music s and fell and came ncal
and died away, while all the while be
meath the sound of the blithe voices the
grand, deep thunder of the organ rolled
about him, and made him think some
way of God.
sit must be the angels" he whispered,
clasping his thin little hands and listen.
ing in ecstacy. SO, I wish / could see
them! They never came this way be-
fore. I hope they'll stay"
had to comfort himself with the memory
of it; The sky grew .grayer, and the
empty room and made Joe SILVER. But
he was used to cold. Then flakes of
snow began to fall; great white things
that danced about with every breath ot
wind, and made him think of the fallen
petals Of his one vanished flower. He
wondered if the blossoms in the green
fields had all at once fallen apart. II
that were true how sorry the angels
must be. He wondered how they could
sing and be glad. The night came sud
denly and hid the world outside the
attic window, and Joe sat in the dark
ness and waited for his grandfather's
coming, with the hunger that he had al
most forgotten when the angels sang,
gnawing, gnawing worse than ever.
II wish l had something to eat" he
said. in a voice that was full of tears.
He did not want to cry, but he felt as
il he could not help it much longer.
By and by he heard o slow, heavy ster
on the creaking stairs.
"Grandfather's coming at last" he
cried, and turned his thin eager face to
the door. The moment it opened he
cried out:
II want something to eat, grand
father. I'm hungry. very hungry, for
the crust was so small this morning.
The old mans answer was q sob. He
tottered to a chair and sank into it
YEARLY, hopelessly, and coveredhis face
with his hands.
"What's the matter, grandfather"
asked Joe. Couldn't you get any
work."